BURN Fitness 101: TV Time and Obesity According to the Nielsen Company who compiles TV viewing behaviors and ratings… - Americans age 30-40 average nearly 5 hours of TV watching per day. - Americans age 50-60 average about 6 hours of TV per day. - Over 65? 7 hours per day! And the number one reason why Americans don’t get enough exercise is…. You guessed it: NOT ENOUGH TIME. My partner in business and life and I turned off our cable TV almost 3 years ago. We still have Netflix, and we use Amazon Prime’s TV and movies, but we quit cable entirely. We keep up with world news just fine using our smart phones and dedicated news aps. We also skip ALL the commercials that bombard America every night with addicting and nutrition-free food! On average, between movies and television series’, I’d guess we average about 3-4 hours of TV per week… MAYBE! You see… TV is likely one of the leading causes of obesity in America! Why? 1. You’re not MOVING. Flopped on the couch your heart rate and metabolism drop to minimal levels. The dinner you just ate just accumulates as fat because your body has no reason to turn it to muscle, or burn it off. The muscle you DID have just atrophies away from disuse. Your body sugar creeps up, you blood pressure creeps up, and your posture deteriorates into a slumped over mess. 2. Most of us eat while watching TV… and we eat “unconsciously”. We open up a nutrient-deficient bag or box of food, and brainlessly shovel it into our mouths without even thinking of portion size or calories. We’re not hungry, we’re just eating… and soon the bag is empty! Why do we eat unconsciously every night? We’re not hungry… we’re simply “prompted” by commercial after commercial… for FOOD. Fast food, snack food… next time you sit down to watch your favorite evening line-up, count the food-base commercials! It’s amazing to me… people who go to the gym and exercise for one hour per day, are considered by many to be fanatics. They are strange. They are OBSESSED! Well… if 5-6 hours of gym-time is obsessive… What do they call 24-30 hours of TV per week? Obviously, heading to the gym instead of watching TV is the best solution, but if that’s not possible at LEAST get outside and move! Gather up your loved ones and walk somewhere. Take your bicycle out for a spin around the neighborhood. Stop at a local park and do some push-ups off the back of a bench. Grab the chains of the swings, and do pull-ups like a TRX trainer! Do some bodyweight squats or lunges! Science has shown that 30 minutes of moderate intensity exercise3 days per week is REQUIRED just to maintain your health. 60 minutes per day 5-6 days per week is required to lose significant fat and build muscle. Sedentary behavior is the root of obesity, diabetes, and heart disease… and eating why sedentary just makes it worse! And through sedentary eating… television is killing you. If you need help breaking your TV habit, and getting your butt in shape, just give us a call!